Time Warner Cable and CBS end stalemate, sign content carriage deal

After a month of failed negotiations and back and forth spats, Time Warner Cable and CBS have finally arrived at terms they both can live with. The two companies have signed a deal that will bring back CBS content for the cable service provider’s subscribers.

The spat between the two companies started at the beginning of last month, when Time Warner Cable dropped CBS from major markets. In retaliation, CBS blocked full streaming of episodes for viewers who use Time Warner Cable as their Internet service provider. This has caused as much as 3 million subscribers to lose access to the network, affecting areas such as New York and Los Angeles.

At the heart of the dispute is a failure to arrive at acceptable pricing fees. The two companies have resumed negotiations, which dragged on for weeks with almost no end in sight. In the meantime, customers who have been caught in a hard place have resorted to other means of accessing their favorite content, which has reportedly caused a spike in the piracy of CBS-related content in affected markets.

Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt made a proposal to offer CBS as a standalone package for subscribers instead of being lumped together with other networks, which would allow customers to decided if they want access to CBS or not. A few weeks later, the service provider also allowed for a temporary truce, at least in New York, restoring CBS in order to give residents access to upcoming political debates.

The two companies have announced today that they have reached an agreement, finally putting an end to the standoff. As part of the deal, Time Warner Cable customers in New York, Los Angeles, and Dallas will once again have access to CBS content, including Showtime and Video-on-Demand (VOD). Services are expected to resume at 6:00 PM ET today.